Educational board game and method of playing the same

Abstract

An educational board game and method of playing the same is provided which includes a game board presenting a plurality of answering player locations, a questioning player location, a plurality of start to finish paths, one for each player, a marker token for each player, a random question and answer selector for selecting a question and answer category, and a set of question and answer cards having questions and answers written thereon corresponding to different categories displayed on the selector. The game further includes a plurality of interchangeable selector faces, each face representing a different group of category indicia. The game also includes a plurality of sets of question and answer cards corresponding to the interchangeable selector faces. The game hereof also preferably includes a die or other chance generator for determining the order of play and a timer for limiting the interval for a player to respond to a question. The method of playing the game includes selecting a question and answer card, spinning the question and answer selector to randomly determine the category to be asked, asking the question displayed on the card corresponding to the category, answering the question, and advancing or retreating the marker token along the player's own path depending on the correctness of the answer.

I claim: 
     
       1. An educational board game for use by a questioning player and a plurality of answering players where the winner is determined by one of a plurality of answering players advancing from a start to a finish area, said game comprising: a game board having a playing surface defined on a base surface thereof, said playing surface presenting indicia separating said surface into a plurality of individual progress paths, one of said paths for each answering player, each said path including a start area, a plurality of intermediate areas, and a finish area, and a master region corresponding to a questioning player;   manually manipulable rotatable chance means operatively associated with said game board;   means for marking each player's progress along said path;   random question-selector means comprising manually manipulable rotatable indicator means and a plurality of commonly sized, interchangeable faces, each of said interchangeable faces presenting a plurality of discrete regions for cooperatively selecting a question thereby to be asked by said questioning player, each of said faces including structure defining an aperture therethrough for receiving a normally vertical indicator means stem; said indicator means being rotatable about said stem;   a plurality of sets of substrates, one set of said substrates corresponding to each of said interchangeable faces, each said substrate bearing a plurality of question and corresponding answer indicia pairs thereon, each of said pairs corresponding to one of said question-selector regions;   each said question and answer substrate being of a uniform size; and   timing means for determining the permissible interval for a response to an asked question.   
     
     
       2. An educational board game as set forth in claim 1, said game board including structure defining an aperture therethrough for receiving said stem and an area for receiving one of said interchangeable faces thereon. 
     
     
       3. An educational game comprising: (a) a game board having a playing surface including: structure defining a plurality of sides, for positioning a plurality of different questioned players,   structure defining an end for positioning of a game master and a master area juxtaposed thereto,   a plurality of individual paths corresponding to each questioned player defined on said surface, each path including a start area, a finish area, and a plurality of intermediate areas;     (b) question-selector means including a face presenting a plurality of different question category spaces and indicator means for randomly selecting one of said category spaces;   (c) a set of question and answer cards, each of said cards including a plurality of mated question and answer pairs, at least one of said pairs corresponding to each of said different category spaces,   (d) marker means for indicating each questioned player's progress along said path;   (e) timer means for receiving a questioned player's answer; and   (f) structure defining an aperture through said board and means for removably and rotatably mounting said indicator means to said game board through said aperture.   
     
     
       4. An educational game as set forth in claim 3, wherein said face includes structure defining a hole therethrough for alignment with said aperture. 
     
     
       5. An educational game as set forth in claim 4, wherein said rotation enabling means comprises a spindle removably mounting said indicator. 
     
     
       6. An educational game as set forth in claim 5, including a plurality of separate faces, each said face presenting a different group of category indicia and including a plurality of sets of question and answer cards, each of said sets of cards corresponding to one of said groups. 
     
     
       7. An educational board game as set forth in claim 6, one of said sets including mathematical question and answer indicia. 
     
     
       8. An educational board game as set forth in claim 7, one of said sets including English language question and answer indicia. 
     
     
       9. An educational board game as set forth in claim 8, one of said groups of category indicia including symbols corresponding to different foreign languages. 
     
     
       10. A method of playing an educational board game for a questioning player and a plurality of answering players, said method including: positioning a marker token for each of said answering players at respective start areas of a game board presenting a surface defining a plurality of paths, each of said paths corresponding to an answering player and including a start area, a finish area, and a plurality of intermediate areas;   sequentially actuating chance generating means for selecting the order of play among said answering players;   actuating random category selector means to randomly select a category of questions and answers;   selecting a question and answer card bearing a plurality of mated question and answer indicia pairs;   said questioning player asking a question of said mated pair corresponding to a randomly selected one of said categories;   actuating a timer means for determining the interval within which an answering player may answer said question after said question is asked;   a selected first answering player answering said question;   said answering player repositioning said player's marker token forwardly toward said finish along said player's path for each answer corresponding to the selected answer indicia mated to said question, or alternatively toward said player's start for each answer not corresponding to the selected answer indicia mated to said question;   repositioning an answering player's marker token to a penalty area defined on said surface of said game board when said answering player answers out of the selected order of play; and   successively repeating said steps of actuating random selector means, selecting a question and answer card, asking a question and repositioning said marker token until one of said answering player's tokens is repositioned into said player's finish area.